Protecting and Growing Self and Wealth in These Uncertain Times

Archive for December 3rd, 2012

On the topic of homicides this morning, here’s something I hear being said more these days…

That kind of thing usually doesn’t happen around here.

Or something along those lines.

Consider the following from Gene Blevins and Eric Johnson on Reuters.com this morning:

Four shot dead in ‘nice’ California suburb – police

The bodies of four gunshot victims were found outside a single-family home being used as a boarding house in a normally peaceful suburb of Los Angeles early on Sunday morning, police said…

Shootings are uncommon in the suburb in the San Fernando Valley region, [Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman Terri Brinkmeyer] said.

“It’s a nice, middle-class neighborhood,” she said.

“Nice.” “Uncommon.” Sound familiar?

Sadly enough, many of us are probably going to hear this stuff being uttered with increasingly regularity as the financial crash draws closer.

As the economy worsens, government budgets will most likely suffer (again) as well, making it difficult to maintain those levels of public safety many of us have grown accustomed to over the years.

In some areas of the country, this situation is already happening. Consider the case of San Bernardino, California. From the CBS Los Angeles website Friday:

City Attorney Tells San Bernardino Residents To ‘Lock Their Doors,’ ‘Load Their Guns’ Because Of Police Downsizing

The city attorney of San Bernardino is under scrutiny for telling residents to “lock their doors and load their guns” during a city council meeting.

The official explained that because the city is bankrupt and slashing public safety budgets people will need to start protecting themselves.

City Attorney Jim Penman said he doesn’t regret what he said…

“Well, if I remember right, I told them to ‘lock their doors and load their guns,’” Penman said.

According to CBS Los Angeles, San Bernardino has cut its police force by about 80 officers as it deals with bankruptcy, and has seen a 50 percent increase in murders in 2012 as compared to last year.

San Bernardino’s experience reminds me of something I wrote all the way back on only the third day of this blog’s existence. From November 24, 2010:

A 25-year veteran of the Toldeo (Ohio) Police Department offered this advice (via FOX’s Toledo affiliate) to residents last year prior to 75 officers being let go by the city:

If I’m an average citizen of Toledo, I definitely would be concerned… Tell people to buy guns. Invest in precious metals – lead, gun powder and brass.

The senior police officer added:

The gang element and the criminal element are getting a little bolder because they know there’s not enough officers out there.

Other law enforcement personnel have shared the same advice with their residents since the onset of the financial crisis.

As the case of San Bernardino shows, similar warnings have been issued since that time, highlighting the importance of the individual taking responsibility for their own safety.

I’ll leave you with what I left those earliest of readers back in November 2010:

This last thought about the individual being ultimately responsible for their own personal protection is hammered home by John S. Farnam, a long-time defensive firearms instructor and deputy sheriff (training officer) in the Park County, Colorado, Sheriff’s Office. In The Farnam Method of Defensive Shotgun and Rifle Shooting, the founder and president of Defense Training International wrote:

It is said by enlightened social scientists, “If it rained twenty-dollar bills every Monday morning, there would still be people begging for their dinner ever Monday evening!” The same is true with criminals. No matter how “civilized” or indulgent our society becomes, there will always be criminals. And, the more foolishly dependent we all become upon governmental institutions as the only means of preserving civil order, the more dubious our continued existence becomes, and the more quickly order will disintegrate when our societal underpinnings are crippled or even imperiled. When citizens become additively dependent on an eleemosynary and paternal government to do for them what they could be, and, of right, ought to be, doing for themselves, that civilization’s days are surely numbered. Never forget, regardless of how politically incorrect it may sound to the uninformed, your personal security is always your responsibility, and yours alone!

The weather here in Chicago was pretty nice this weekend considering the time of year it is. Even dropped by the Pickwick Restaurant in nearby Park Ridge for banana splits with the girlfriend before picking up holiday cards a couple doors down (they now have cards for mail/delivery people from the dog- too funny).

And as it’s been the case here in the Windy City for some time now, the warm weather meant some neighborhoods transformed into a shooting gallery. Last I heard, 8 people were killed in violence this weekend.

Chicago looks to be on track to reach 500 homicides this year. From the wildly-popular Chicago police blog Second City Cop early this morning:

A rough count of homicides puts it around 487. That might be subject to change, but 500 is just over the horizon. 515 is a real possibility for the year.

Now, SCC is talking about the “official” homicide count here. According to a different blog I’ve started reading, homicides in the Second City are already over 500 in 2012. Comfortably over. From the sidebar of the Chicago crime blog Crime in Chicago this morning:

NUMBER OF HOMICIDES IN CHICAGO AS OF Dec. 2, 2012

510

Second City Cop, 487. Crime in Chicago, 510. Why the discrepancy?

From a November 28 post on Crime in Chicago:

The city feeds the media and the public homicide numbers that do not include Justifiable Homicides. Example here- Police fatally shoot man who pointed gun at them We do, after all an outcome of a homicide does not change depending on who kills you.

The city will classify obvious homicides as “Death Investigation” and not close the case until the following year, when the city’s homicide rate is no longer front page news. Example here- Body found in burning Brighton Park garage

Finally we obtain our numbers directly form the Chicago Police Department website- http://gis.chicagopolice.org/ We stand by our numbers. Now go ask the CPD and REDEYE to explain their numbers and this…..

“The city will count a double homicide as 1 homicide.” “The city will classify obvious homicides as ‘Death Investigation’ and not close the case until the following year.” I’ve heard this before. Is that really the case?

In 2011, the “official” number of murders was 433. Crime in Chicago counted 441 homicides.

From My Other Blog

Continuing “Greek Week” on Offshore Safe Deposit Boxes, Greek state television has announced Greek banks will remain closed for the remainder of this week. Both Reuters and the Associated Press have reported cash withdrawals from Greek bank safe deposit boxes have been prohibited. Reuters ran its story Sunday while the Associated Press revealed Monday: No […] ...

While pouring over the latest news of Greece’s sovereign debt crisis tonight, I spotted the following snippet on the Daily Mail (UK) website. Nick Fagge reported Wednesday: Safety-box deposit firms have reported a huge increase in demand with wealthy Greeks storing their cash and other valuables anywhere other than their bank… (Editor’s note: Bold added […] ...

Yesterday, I blogged about a Reuters piece from Sunday which said cash withdrawals from Greek bank safe deposit boxes were now prohibited. Monday, the Associated Press reported that accessing currency from these containers might be left to the legislative process. From the Fox News website: There was confusion Sunday night over the fate of bank […] ...